OCHA: Afghanistan Shelter Response 95% Unfunded as Over 6 Million Returnees Strain Housing

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on August 26, 2026 that Afghanistan's shelter assistance appeal — covering emergency tents, transitional housing, roofing materials, and repairs for partially damaged homes — requested $160 million but has received only 4.7% of that amount, leaving a $153 million gap (over 95% unfunded). The shortfall has forced humanitarian agencies to scale back distributions, delay planned repairs, and turn away families at reception centers, leaving thousands of returnees sleeping in open fields, abandoned buildings, or makeshift lean-tos as winter approaches, heightening risks of exposure, disease, and gender-based violence. UN-Habitat separately reported that more than 6 million Afghan migrants have returned to Afghanistan over the past three years, straining an already acute shelter crisis.